The Sound of Silence
by katriellejs
Summary: Hermione and Sirius have a run-in, in the Black library. She's listening to a favorite song, when Sirius decides he needs to thank her for saving his life two years ago.


.

Hello darkness, my old friend,

I've come to talk with you again,

Because a vision softly creeping,

Left its seeds while I was sleeping,

And the vision that was planted in my brain

Still remains

Within the sound of silence.

.

In the dreary library of Number 12 Grimmauld place Hermione was attempting to decontaminate the moth-eaten curtains. The "adults" were downstairs in the kitchen having an Order meeting. She did not understand why the "children" should not be able to know what is happening with You-Know-Who and his followers. Hermione knew that the Order members were trying to protect them, but sometimes it is better to know the dangers then not. Mrs. Weasley had set a long and rigorous job for all the kids to keep them busy. Each child had a different job in a different room of the dark house. Currently, the curtains were trying to strangle her. Her emotions were running high; she was frustrated for not being able to tell Harry where they were and what little she knew about what was going on. Scared as she was, about what with the looming war ahead, Hermione was determined to distract herself. She was listening to her and her parents' favorite song, "The Sound of Silence" by Simon and Garfunkel.

.

In restless dreams I walked alone

Narrow streets of cobblestone,

'Neath the halo of a street lamp,

I turned my collar to the cold and damp

When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light

That split the night

And touched the sound of silence.

.

Sirius Black, framed ex-con, Azkaban escapee, is _annoyed_. That's right, you heard it._ Annoyed_. He is loathing having to stay in this horrible, musty, old house. He was especially _annoyed_ at Dumbledore for keeping his godson coped with his _annoying_, magic-hating-muggle relatives of his. The Order meeting currently taking place in his dead mother's kitchen, is humdrum. Snape is reciting the same thing about the 'Dark Lord' as he was two weeks ago, throwing patronizing looks at Sirius while foregoing that he is risking his life every day for the Order. _Stupid Snivellus, _Sirius spat in his head. Sirius was walking along one of the many hall ways when he heard music coming from the library.

Sneaking into the Black Library, Sirius quickly hid behind a large bookshelf. Hermione was swaying softly while cleaning the curtains, listening to this muggle song. He had never heard of this song, and he has heard plenty of them just to piss his mother off. He remembers when she was the buck-toothed and bushy-haired girl who helped save him from the dementor's kiss. Thinking on it, how did Harry and Hermione save him a year ago? He could have sworn that when he was being dragged up to Flitwick's classroom after they were found by Snape at the Black lake, he saw Harry and Hermione unconscious on stretchers. Then, about a minute after he was thrown into the classroom, they show up with a bloody Hippogriff! He had been doomed until they showed up. He was going to get his soul sucked out of his body through his mouth. That was not the way he wanted to go.

Either way, Sirius still owed Hermione his life….. Or would it be soul? Yet, he never properly thanked her. Maybe he should talk to her now. He never was a good communicator, so this could be arduous. Sirius admired her greatly. He found it amusing that she was so alike Moony. Almost as if she were his reincarnate. Sirius snorted, a rather thunderous snort. He quickly covered his face, somehow hoping that the music would have drowned the noise out. Sirius did not want it to seem as if he was spying one her. That would be difficult to demystify.

.

And in the naked light I saw

Ten thousand people, maybe more.

People talking without speaking,

People hearing without listening,

People writing songs that voices never share

And no one dared

Disturb the sound of silence.

.

.

Hermione did, in fact, hear the much unsophisticated snort. Quickly, she had her wand pointed toward the bookshelf, where the noise had come from. In the back of her mind, she knew that there was no bona fide threat in the house, except maybe the Doxies and Boggarts. But, being on edge as she has been lately, you can never be too careful in a dangerous time like this. As Mad-Eye Moody always said, "Constant Vigilance!"

"Who's there?" She shouted to the dark library. Feeling a thick, bubbling amount of nervousness crawl its way up her throat, she could hear her voice waver slightly. Ever since seeing Cedric's dead body, at the end of the third task last year, she has been having capricious nightmares, showing just how cruel the world is.

"It's just me, Sirius." Hermione heard Sirius Black's voice shout, coming out from behind a bookshelf. Hermione felt like an idiot. _Of course it was going to be someone I know! Don't be ridiculous Hermione! _She mentally berated herself.

"Oh, Thank Merlin! You scared me Sirius." She said, slightly hysterical. A giggle broke out of her throat; until she, with alacrity, brought her hand to cover her mouth.

"Are you okay?" He inquired, giving her a strange look.

"Yes, sir, I am. Thank you. What were you doing behind the bookshelf?" She asked while he looked momentarily startled at how she addressed him.

"No need for the for the formalities, Hermione. You did save my life after all." Hermione blushed at the praise. Sirius continued, "Which is why I am here, I would like to thank you for helping me escape last year. Since I have not yet properly done so. I am in your debt. Although, I do wonder how you got to the tower I was held in, with a hippogriff, no less."

Hermione was startled; she had not been expecting this. She appreciated it nonetheless, and she told him so. "You're welcome, I appreciate it." Hermione smiled a wryly and inquired, "Do you really desire me to explain it?" Once Sirius gave his nod in assent, she began to explain, but before she got far, the song in the background, was skipping on the record player. Hermione got up with a grace she hardly ever noticed, she quickly pulled the needle off of the record so the skipping song halted. She then went to sit on the armchair opposite the couch Sirius was occupying at the moment.

"You understand, of course, that near the end of second year we choose our elective classes for third year; such as, Care of Magical Creatures or Ancient Runes. Well, my studious nature would not allow me to only choose two classes, so I went to speak with Professor Mcgonagall. She had told me that she would talk with Professor Dumbledore to see how my timetable would be fashioned. I didn't hear from her until the first day of my third year. When we got to the castle the first night she brought me to her office and gave me a time-turner." Sirius had his eyebrows raised in incredulity, so Hermione gave him the most serious nod she could muster, and then gave him a smile.

"Yes, a time-turner, she explained that she had to write many letters to the ministry and converse with the unspeakables, telling them that I was a model student and took my studies very seriously. The ministry agreed, in the end, but she made me promise that I would only use the time-turner for scholarly means. I did, I worked hard, by the end of the year I was exhausted. After we learned of your true affiliations and the dementor's pushed us, and Harry, into unconsciousness; Harry and I were in the Hospital Wing with Ron unconscious still and no one believing us. The fool, Minister Fudge, thought we were confunded. Eventually, Dumbledore shooed everyone out and told me that we needed more _time_, and that _three turns should do it, _and _we might be able to save more than one innocent life tonight. _Harry didn't understand, but I did, he wanted us to go back in time. So, we went three hours back and rescued Buckbeak from being executed. We then waited until you would be brought up into Flitwick's classroom for the dementor's kiss. Harry being Harry had thought he had seen his dad with the patronus that was casted while the dementors were attacking at the lake, he wanted to see if it really was him. I couldn't really blame him, no matter how many times I reminded him of the rules, _you must not be seen. _ Before I could stop him he was running off to the lake, he thought he was going to see his father, it turned out though that it was really Harry that had cast the patronus to ward off the dementors from us. He is said to have an uncanny resemblance to his father."

Sirius stiffened slightly, "It is uncanny, isn't it?" Hermione thinking that he rather looked like a down-trodden mouse, reached across the short space between where they were sitting and briefly grasped his hand. The reassurance was appreciated.

"So, we brought Buckbeak up to the tower in which you were held, broke you out and you escaped." Hermione finished her story with a humor-induced, dramatic hand movement. "Then I gave back the time-turner since all of my extra classes and studying were getting too taxing."

"Wow! That was an interesting story. You should write a book" Sirius said trying to be comical. "Thank you for explaining, Hermione; since no one seems to want to, as of yet." He said this with disdain, Hermione realized that no one had cared enough to explain, even her. She felt a certain amount of shame and anger course through her.

Since she was completely zoned out in her own bubble, so hwith aquestion back to earthHHHHe she was completely zoned out in her own bubble, e brought her back down to Earth with a question, "So, what was that song you were listening to before?"

Hermione smiled, "An old favorite of my parents, to which I seem to have acquired a taste for. It's called 'The Sound of Silence' by Simon and Garfunkel. The duo was at its peak both in popularity and music in the 60's, I believe."

To Hermione's surprise, Sirius hummed walked over to the record player and brought the needle down on the surface of the vinyl record. The soft music that Hermione has come to love slowly sounded around the room. The music was intertwining into the very atoms of the books and the dusty air filling up the library. Sirius walked over and held out his hand, "Would you dance with me?" he asked. Hermione smiled, clasped his hand and brought her other hand to rest upon his shoulder. He took the hand that was not currently holding hers with and rested it lightly against her waist. He slowly led them in a soft waltz. They danced away the song and then the next until there were no more songs left. Not a care in the world, except each other and the feeling of camaraderie among them.

.

"Fools," said I, "You do not know –

Silence like a cancer grows.

Hear my words that I might teach you.

Take my arms that I might reach you."

But my words like silent raindrops fell

And echoed in the wells of silence

.

.

And the people bowed and prayed

To the neon god they made.

And the sign flashed out its warning

In the words that it was forming.

And the sign said, The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls

And tenement halls

And whispered in the sound of silence

So, what was that song you were listening to before?"

.


End file.
